The Side-Effects of Excessive Debt

There are many consequences to excessive debt. You could lose your home or possessions if you’re not able to make repayments and your credit score could suffer. However, what is often less talked about is the way that debt can impact other areas of your lifeespecially if you have no credit check loans or other types of unsecured loans. From your relationships through to the way you feel about yourself there are many side-effects of excessive debt that anyone with debt issues could identify with.

What are the side-effects of excessive debt?

We all deal with life differently and the same is true for debt. One person might feel that $1,500 is an excessive debt whereas another person wouldn’t feel that they owed an excessive amount until they reached a figure such as $20,000. What is excessive debt for one person might be easily manageable for another. Before you make any applications for debt, it’s a good idea to work out what excessive debt means to you, based on your finances and your financial perspective. At what point might you feel that the level of debt you have is overwhelming? It’s a good idea to do this before you start borrowing, as opposed to once you’re in debt and you’re already feeling – or facing – some of these side effects:

A fear of the future. It can be difficult to enjoy your life and look forward to the future if you are living under the shadow of excessive debt.

The spectre of bankruptcy. Bankruptcy is a consequence of not being able to repay what you borrow so it is an obvious side-effect of excessive debt.

Being evicted. If you’re not able to keep up rent or mortgage repayments because you’ve run up excessive debts then you may find yourself losing the roof over your head as a result.

Problems with key relationships. There are many interpersonal side-effects that can result from excessive debt and causing issues to arise in your important relationships is probably the most troubling. You may find yourself being short tempered with loved ones, resenting or blaming others or isolating yourself from people because you feel ashamed.

Feeling emotionally overwhelmed. Excessive debt can turn an otherwise fairly balanced life into one that feels very unstable. You may begin to experience feelings of stress, anxiety and depression that are new – or which trigger problems that you’ve had in the past.

Being unable to cope. Excessive debt can be very undermining. It can knock your confidence and self-esteem and lead to some bad decision making in order to try and resolve the situation – for example, borrowing money and taking on even more debt to pay off some existing debt. If the situation spirals then the end result may be that you feel unable to cope or see a way out of your circumstances.

Losing your job or underperforming. The fallout of the emotional side-effects of excessive debt can make it difficult to concentrate and the loss of confidence can affect work performance. If you start to feel the pressure of losing your job as a result this can make the situation even worse.

Even if you are experiencing all of these side-effects of excessive debt there is always a way back. Reach out and ask for help today to get started.